Well, dear readers, this week is flying by, like a gazelle with acid reflux. Are we really heading toward the middle of March already? I’m happy to announce that the next Kritzerland show is all cast save for our guest star – we’ve gone through a few candidates already, but scheduling problems abound. But our core cast is wonderful: Cynthia Ferrer, Damon Kirsche, Lisa Livesay, Madison Claire Parks, and Robert Yacko, along with young Jenna Rosen, and our musical director Lloyd Cohen. We’ve got two newbies this time – Miss Ferrerr, who I really like, and Madison Claire Parks who is the granddaughter of Betty Garrett and at seventeen a very talented young woman. The show is Just In Time: The Songs of Comden and Green. It was hard making the song choices because there are so many amazing songs from which to choose, but I had to go with my favorites. Guy Haines will be singing one song, that song to be chosen between two candidates – one he knows already and one he’d have to learn, so I think we know which it will end up being. I loaded all the songs into iTunes, gathered all the sheet music and then sent all the music to our MD, and began sending music and mp3s to our singers, which I’ll finish doing this morning. So, this month we’re actually a little ahead of the game, which is great for a change. All the songs are assigned and hopefully it will be a really fun show.
Otherwise, I got up late because I was up at seven for an hour and needed to get more sleep. Once up, I answered e-mails, loaded CDs, and then toddled off to have some lunch – I had a quesadilla. I am thoroughly nauseated with my weight right now and yesterday was the day I began to do something about it. After lunch, I picked up some packages, and then I came home and did a two-mile jog. Then it was more stuff for the Kritzerland show, and I found that I’d made the perfect decision not to announce our two new releases today, as there ended up being several release announcements that I didn’t want to go anywhere near.
Then it was time to mosey on over to the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. I’d been invited to see some kind of music thing there – not sure really what it’s all about, but I now know someone who is working for the group that puts on this stuff. The audience was onstage with the band and singers. I gather the evening supports abused women or something, at least I think that’s what I heard. I don’t really go in for these kinds of things but it was a big crowd, many of whom were older folks who still fancy themselves “hip” and younger folks who definitely fancy themselves “hip.” I fell into the “I don’t fancy myself hip ever” crowd. Thanks to our very own VinTek and his ever-lovin’ Janet, we were at a very nice table close to everything. I gather this is one of a series of musical events these people do. The evening was a tribute to songwriter Tena Clark, who, according to my program, is a legend. To show you just how much of an old Jew I am and how completely un-hip I am, I’ve never heard of this person. But I found out during the evening she’s written several hit songs, none of which I’ve ever heard before. She was there and personable, and there was a lady host who was a little too active in the background while people were performing, constantly drawing my attention to her rather than the singer. The songs are really not my kind of thing, but it was pleasant enough, with lots of whooping and hollering, and from one segment of the crowd a standing ovation after every one of the eight or so songs. If people tried to do that at a Kritzerland show I would tell them to stop it. The singers were all good and included Mary Wilson and Patti Austin, both of whom still have it. Of the others, I enjoyed young Sara Niemietz, who used to be my MySpace friend for reasons I no longer remember. I think she began as a young musical theatre wannabe who has now turned into a young pop singer. She’s got talent and she should think about musical theatre again. It all went by very quickly – good band, too.
After, the person I was with and I went to the Coral Café because she was hungry. I was such a good boy and had a fruit bowl and a little bit of cottage cheese and that was that. So, definitely an under 1000 calorie day and evening. Then I came home, did some work on the computer, and that was that.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I really must get a good night’s beauty sleep.
Today, I shall do another jog, I shall eat, I shall hopefully pick up packages, and I shall get all singers their music and mp3s so they can begin learning their stuff. Other than that, I have to do some liner notes, prep our release announcements and get our web guy the sound files and then I’ll relax.
The rest of the week is meetings and meals and meals and meetings, not necessarily in that order, along with some meetings and meals. I also have to see a show on Friday night directed by my pal Kay Cole, and starring Barry Pearl’s ever-lovin’ Cindy Dellinger. I’m looking forward to it.
I should begin receiving the audition audios for the Hofstetter books – I think we’ve got about fifteen of them coming and I’m very much looking forward to hearing them – I think it will be very interesting indeed.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do a jog, hopefully pick up packages, eat, get the singers their music and mp3s and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: Since I know nothing about pop music certainly since the 90s, is there anyone or anything you like and that’s worth listening to? I really don’t care for singers like Celine Dion or any of that stuff, and I have no clew about current pop music. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy that we’re all cast save for our guest star.